7 comments:

Though I love to see so many people having fun on bikes, there is one thing that jumps out at me. It seems people in SF hate helmets? Why?

This is coming from a NW native (1st and 3rd most biked cities in the country) whose life was saved by a helmet. Drivers in Seattle and Portland are pretty savvy when it comes to cyclists but still accidents happen (and old men in SUVs can run a stop sign and run you down) anywhere.

It happens in SF too. Just a few weeks ago a guy was hit by an inattentive driver near Golden Gate park.

People in SF don't "hate" helmets, anymore than people anywhere else "hate" helmets. It is simply that the climate of SF tends to be one that is less fearful than in some places. People everywhere make choices based on a variety of factors of a much more mundane nature than "hate".

Oh, goodness. It wasn't meant to be an attack and I fear that you may have taken it that way with the abundance of quotation marks.

It's not a matter of being fearful. It's just like wearing a seatbelt in a car. Helmets do save people when their heads strike things (me! me!). I was just wondering I feel that by choosing a word like "hate" (let's say "have a tendency toward not" instead, yes?)

Also, yes I understand that there are some places where people don't feel the need to wear helmets. I love Amsterdam for the freedom and safe infrastructure in place to negate the need for helmets, but no place in North America is like that.

Anyway, I guess I'll continue to be fearful and wear my helmet while commuting in SF. :)